Allowing Certified Professional Midwives (CPMs) to practice to their full scope, including the ability to obtain, carry, and administer medications and operate under standing orders from a prescribing provider, is essential to ensuring safe, efficient, and equitable maternity care. Access to medications such as anti-hemorrhagics, IV fluids, antibiotics, and local anesthetics enables CPMs to respond swiftly to common and urgent complications, reducing the need for unnecessary transfers and improving continuity of care. Additionally, standing orders provide a structured, supervised framework that expands the CPM’s ability to manage care within evidence-based protocols, ensuring timely and appropriate intervention when necessary. This approach not only enhances patient safety and autonomy but also supports collaborative care models, strengthening integration with the broader healthcare system while maintaining the midwifery model of care. Expanding CPMs' scope in this way improves access to essential services, particularly for those in rural and underserved areas, where midwives often serve as the primary maternity care providers.
Special Thanks
Special thank you to Kristin Effland, CPM, MA-MCHS, and Britney Zell, LM, CPM, MSM, for all their hard work putting the first spreadsheet together, sharing it with us, and allowing us to host the information and keep it up to date.
Sources
Effland, K. J., Hays, K., Zell, B. A., Lawal, T., & Koontz, M.. (2021). Medication access & midwifery integration: An Example of community midwifery advocacy for access in Washington state, USA. Birth: Issues in Perinatal Care, 48(1), 4-13. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/birt.12523
Effland, K. J., Hays, K., Zell, B. A., Lawal, T., Grantham, R. L., & Koontz, M. (2021). Increasing Access to Medications and Devices for the Care of Low-Risk Childbearing Families: An Analysis of Existing Law and Strategies for Advocacy. Journal of Midwifery & Women’s Health. 66(5), 604-623. https://doi.org/10.1111/jmwh.13275
Maternal Health Program - Midwifery Licensing. "PLEASE READ: Updated DOH Practice Guidelines for NM Licensed Midwives Have Been Posted and Are in Effect." Received by [Your Name], 26 Feb. 2025. Email.
More information
Zell, B., Effland, K., Hays, K., Snyder, M., Gordon, W. (2024). Prescriptive Authority for Direct Entry Midwives in Washington State: Increasing Client Access to Contraception. Journal of Midwifery & Women’s Health. 69(4), 600-605. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/share/author/ZDPX4YNYDAKJAJRJVPW9?target=10.1111/jmwh.13606 or http://doi.org/10.1111/jmwh.13606